I Bet My Life
by It's The Fear
Summary: Before Umbrella forever changed their lives, Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield had simply been two dedicated members of S.T.A.R.S. Throughout their time together, lifelong friendships are forged that would one day be put to the test at the hands of the man they had trusted with their lives. Before they began leading the fight against evil, they were just Chris and Jill.


** With the Resident Evil Remake being recently released on the 360, I suddenly remembered how much I had fallen in love with this series, and its characters, while playing that game for the first time. So, I thought I would give a new story a try and see how it went! I tried to research all of the characters and events as much as possible, but I wanted to apologize now in case I leave some errors along the way. I'll try to be as accurate as possible, but don't lose it if some things don't quite add up!**

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** Don't forget to drop a review and I really hope you guys enjoy this one!**

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Her day began like any other. Jill stopped to pick up her morning coffee and thanked the barista with a quick smile before making an exit out of the coffee shop and into her car. Tucking a loose strand of her dark brown hair behind her ear, Jill took in a deep breath of fresh air as she drove through the same neighbourhoods on her way to work.

She had woken up early to get a head start on the pile of paperwork that had taken over her desk. She figured an extra hour of work would be enough to get most of the pile completed and reminded herself of having the weekend off as a way to get through it. Getting a weekend off wasn't a familiar concept to the young B&amp;E specialist and so when she was lucky enough to get it, she made sure to enjoy it.

She didn't have much planned and that seemed to be the way she liked it these days. Years ago, you would never find her at home on a Saturday night. A younger Jill would be found anywhere but home on the weekend. Whether it was having a few drinks at a neighbourhood pub or hanging out at a friend's house, Jill had always kept herself busy. But as she got older, Jill began to realize she was starting to appreciate the small things in life more. She was perfectly content with ordering food in and catching up on her favourite television shows that she had missed during the work week. She hated to admit it, but sometimes she was sure that somewhere along the line she had finally become a responsible adult.

It made her laugh just to think about it. Here she was, working a full-time job that she adored, living in her own apartment and driving a car she had purchased on her own. Sure, she wasn't married, a mother or a homeowner, but she was more than happy with what she had accomplished, despite what others might think.

She parked her car in its usual spot and made her way into the S.T.A.R.S headquarters with her coffee in hand. Taking off her sunglasses, she placed them on top of her head as she made her way to her desk. She hadn't expected anyone else to be in the building and nearly had a heart attack when she came around a corner and crashed into Richard.

Jill swore under her breath and moved her hand away to avoid spilling hot coffee all over herself. "Jesus, Richard, what the hell!"

He couldn't help but laugh at her frustration. Jill had been a member of S.T.A.R.S for a while now but Richard still loved nothing more than to tease and annoy the hell out of her. It had become quite the pastime for him at work.

"Well, where are you heading in such a rush, Valentine?" He glanced at the watch strapped to his wrist and frowned. "And why the hell are you here so early?"

"I should ask you the same. It's unheard of for you to be here on time, let alone early." Jill saw a smile crack on Richards lips and immediately knew that he was up to no good. "What are you _really _doing here?"

Richard paused for a moment before surrendering and motioning for her to follow him. She did so in silence, creeping past the desks of her comrades until she came to a stop in front of Chris'. She gave Richard a confused look when she noticed nothing had been moved or taken from Chris' desk. "I don't get it."

Richard smirked and pointed towards the chair. "Chris has been giving me a hard time lately so I figured I'd get even."

"Wesker is going to kill you if he finds out you damaged work property." Jill warned as she took a seat directly across from Chris' desk. She began to sort through the paperwork when Richard took a seat at the edge of her desk.

"I didn't damage anything, Valentine. Simply took out a few extra screws. So, seriously, what are you doing here so early?" He cocked his head backwards and towards the desk Chris called his own. "You hoping to run into Redfield? Maybe get him alone and confess your undying love for him?"

Jill felt her face go flush with embarrassment and hushed him as though they were in a crowded room. "Jesus Christ, Richard, shut up! I swear to God, one of these days I'm going to kick your ass."

"Good. Then you wouldn't mind if I asked-"

"I'd pay to see that." Chris smiled brightly as he entered the room. He dropped his heavy bag down onto the floor beside his desk and took a swig from the coffee cup in his hand. "Seriously, is there any way we can fund that? Think about the money we could bring in from everyone wanting to see his ass get kicked by a girl."

Jill rose an eyebrow. "'A girl'? What's that supposed to mean, Chris?"

Richard snickered and glanced over at his friend, eagerly awaiting his attempt to dig his way out of this one. "Yeah, Chris? What exactly _is _that supposed to mean?" He crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged in exaggeration.

Chris rolled his eyes and set his coffee down on the table. "It's too early for this, guys. At least let me finish my coffee, alright?" He let out a sigh and plopped down into his chair.

Not a moment later, it collapsed underneath him. Chris cursed loudly as he picked himself off the ground, brushing himself off. Richard had already taken off down the hall, howling with laughter as he tried to escape the wrath of Chris Redfield. Jill tried to stifle her laugh but it didn't go unnoticed by Chris.

Only when he took off after Richard in a huff did Jill let the laughter erupt from her lips. By the time her laughter stopped she had been reduced to a puddle of tears. Wiping them away, she let out a deep breath and told herself to focus on the task at hand. She was able to begin her paperwork and listened silently to the heavy footsteps run through the halls of the building as Chris hunted Richard down.

Eventually, Chris returned his desk and fixed the chair silently before taking a seat in it. He let out a heavy sigh as Jill looked around and noticed Richard was nowhere to be found.

"Oh God. You killed Richard, didn't you?"

Chris shot her a sly smile and shrugged. "He'll come back eventually."

Jill shook her head and set aside a completed form before moving onto the next one. She kept her eyes focused on the scattered papers in front of her as she spoke to Chris. "What are you doing here so early? You're usually not here until at least noon." Okay, so that last bit was a little exaggerated, but Chris Redfield had never been one for punctuality when it came to spending time in their headquarters. He lived for the field. It was where he thrived and felt alive. When time came to be in the office and deal with paperwork Chris was barely there. She had lost track of how many arguments he had gotten into with Wesker because of it.

"Claire's coming to visit in the afternoon. I figured I'd come in early, do my work and get the hell out of here."

Jill smiled sweetly at how Chris's face lit up at the mention of the younger Redfield. "Aw, your sister's coming to visit. That'll be nice. What do you guys have planned for the weekend?"

"Nothing planned yet." Of course not. Chris had never been one for planning things out. He took it as it came and worked with what he had in front of him. Claire, unfortunately, seemed to inherit the same trait as her older brother. "Actually, we were just going to go get lunch. You wanna join us?"

Jill scanned over the remaining papers in front of her and nodded. "I think I can get all of this done in a few hours. Why not?"

"Great. I'm going to go work out for a bit in the gym. Claire's train comes in at two. I'll meet you in the parking lot at one thirty. Sound good?"

Jill gave him a thumbs up. "Sounds good."

* * *

As time went by, more of Jill's comrades came into the office and settled into their desk. They greeted each other when they passed by and everyone kept their heads down and focused on the paperwork that was due to be handed into Wesker today. Wesker was never a laid back, chill guy, but he had never been as uptight as he had been lately. None of them could figure out what had him in such a sour mood, though Chris was quick to point out it was most likely due to not getting laid in a while and everyone else had soon agreed.

She glanced up from her desk and looked up at the clock. She was supposed to meet Chris in the parking lot in a few minutes so she finished her sentence and piled the papers together on the corner of her desk. She could feel some of her teammate's eyes on her as she walked past but kept her head up and her gaze forward. None of them had ever acted inappropriate with her, and she knew them well enough by now to know that none of them ever would. But that didn't mean they didn't watch her walk by every once in a while.

Make no mistake, Jill never let those glances go. The last time she paid them back, she stole Richard's clothes while he was taking a shower in the gym. Instead finding his pants and t-shirt waiting for him, Richard came across a pink tracksuit that had his name written on it. Literally. Jill stuck a post it to the outfit with Richard's name and a heart instead of a period at the end.

Richard had been left with no other choice but to walk into the office wearing the ill fitting pink tracksuit Jill had left him. Jill was treated like a hero by the other men for the rest of the month.

She waved to Chris as she approached his car and got into the passenger seat. They talked the entire way to the train station, laughing at jokes and reminiscing. If her life stayed like this, Jill would be perfectly okay with it. She had a job she loved, friends and co-workers she cherished more than anything and a life full of endless possibilities. She had no idea that this would be the last year of her life that was carefree and lighthearted.

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**Thanks for reading! What'd you think of the first chapter? Don't forget to drop a review and let me know!**


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